


The Convalescence

by HeroSavesPeople



Category: The Flash (TV 2014), westallen
Genre: Barry and Iris quietly looking out for each other, Criminal AU, F/M, Hotel Artemis-inspired, Love, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-28
Updated: 2019-09-28
Packaged: 2020-10-30 04:48:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20808782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeroSavesPeople/pseuds/HeroSavesPeople
Summary: Iris West, otherwise known as Fluer Mauve in crime world, enters the Artemis to save her dying friend but gets a lot more healing than she expected.





	The Convalescence

Pain seared up the side of her body, her ribs throbbing as she hobbled off the elevator and up to the gate with Linda in tow. She might have been injured, but she refused to spare a moment on her own wounds when there was a chance Linda could bleed out and die right in her arms. 

She banged on the gate, her breathing labored with the weight of Linda and her own pain pierced through her. 

"Nurse! Nurse!"

Within moments a small figure appeared with large eyeglasses, giving her the appearance of a fish, her eyes so magnified through the lens. 

"I need your help," Iris wheezed. 

The small woman stood with smooth dark skin, the only indication of her age in the wrinkles at the corner of her eyes. She looked at Iris and Linda in a calculating manner for a brief moment.

"Well, what are you standing there for? You know the rules, scan your bracelet."

Iris rolled her eyes. "Jesus fuck, Cecile, you know me by now and you see my bracelet clear as day," Iris gritted out, waving her wrist. 

"I don't see hers. And it's Nurse while we're in here. Don't forget there are others here."

"I'll add a bonus to my subscription for her. Just let us in,  _ Nurse. _ "

Iris held her wrist out to be scanned as Cecile calls out to someone. "Everest! Get out of here, we've got two wounded, one critical."

Just as the gates slid open, a thin figure walked up behind Cecile. Iris had been expecting to see the usual tall, lumbering figure of Eddie Thawne, or as he was more notably known around the Artemis, "Brick," certainly not someone as thin as the person before her. 

Eddie was known as "Brick" for his imposing presence, and being as heavy-handed as a brick. They say every punch lands like a bag of cement, he was that strong. More often than not, it only took one hit to bruise and disable his opponent and it was why Cecile had brought him onto her team. For the more wayward criminals that didn't abide by the Artemis' code, Eddie was at the ready to show remind them of whose house they were in. 

It was never a question as to why Cecile would bring him on, but as Iris glanced at this man named "Everest," she had to wonder what Cecile was thinking. He was a tall, lanky and barely any meat to his bones And his appearance certainly didn’t live up to his namesake. His grim features were set against a thin face that looked too delicate in a place like this. 

But then again, Iris of all people, knew that appearances wasn’t everything. It's the one advantage she had over her adversaries and she betted on them underestimating her strength despite her small frame. 

And she was proving her strength in that moment as she hefted Linda closer despite wincing in pain and walking her through the threshold. She could hear Linda's shallow breathing and it caused the nerves in her body to jumble. 

Linda was the only family she had in her life and while meeting her lead to a life of crime, it was a life that brought security and family and that was the only thing she ever wanted since she was abandoned all those years ago and she would do anything to protect her family. Which is why when this so-called "Everest" reached for her, she hesitated. 

"Who the hell is this? Where's Brick?"

"Everest" looked at her impassively, but his eyes roved over her face in a way that made her squirm. There was something about the way he looked at her that irritated her. It wasn't even in the perverse manner men had a tendency of looking at her, it was just…impassive but penetrating. As if he was reading her history and her story in her face. 

Cecile swatted at Iris impatiently and guided Linda toward Everest. "Just give her to him unless you want your friend to bleed out, Mauve."

Mauve. It hadn't been the most clever of nicknames that Nurse had given to Iris, but she later found it was supposed to be Fluer Mauve after her name. Since Iris had been found in France as an orphan Nurse thought she'd pay homage to her birthplace even though Iris sought to leave all traces of her past exactly there. The past. 

Iris reluctantly relinquished her hold on Linda, watching carefully as Everest effortlessly lifted her into his arms and walked toward the hallway on the right where Iris knew the emergency triage room was kept.

Iris followed after but it seemed the adrenaline was beginning to wear away because suddenly she could feel the sharp pain return with a vengeance. Her concern and momentary distraction with the newcomer had taken her mind off her own pain, but it was making its presence known as Iris fought to catch her breath. 

Cecile who was hobbling behind Everest and Linda glanced back at her, her calculating eyes taking in Iris faltering gait and hunched position. 

She turned back to look ahead. "Everest! Get the girl to the triage bed quickly and the supplies ready. I'll be going solo on this one."

Iris followed them into the room and as soon as Linda was on a bed, Cecile got to work. Iris leaned heavily against the doorframe, looking on in concern as her vision began to slightly blur with pain and traitorous tears. 

"Is she going to be ok?" Iris asked hoarsely.

"Working on it. You, however….Everest, patch her up."

Before she could register the words, she felt herself being lifted. 

"What the fuck? Let go of me," she said weakly. 

"Relax Mauve, he’ll take care of you," Cecile called out as she was taken from Linda's room to the one next door. 

(Iris didn’t know then just how true her words would be.)

By the time she felt her back settle against a cot, Iris barely had any fight left, her head pounding, her ribs throbbing painfully. Her vision began to blur but she fought against succumbing to darkness. 

"Is she going to be ok?"

There was no answer as her shirt was cut away from her body. She closed her eyes and heard clattering of metal tools before a set of wheels rolled up closer. She heard the stool sink with Everest's weight and she lolled her head to the side to look at him. 

He had put on a pair of vinyl gloves was preparing to wipe her wound with alcohol when she grabbed his pale forearm. She felt his warm skin under her cold ones and it felt like a reprieve in the cold she had been in.

He looked down at her hand on his arm before looking at her pleading eyes. "Please. Please, help her."

He remains silent for what feels like a long moment before he nodded, looking into her eyes. She closed her eyes again and let her hand fall away. 

"I don't want a sedative. I can take it."

He put down the mask and picked up a syringe instead and got to work. He must've given her morphine because soon the pain was fading and her vision became clearer. The sound of the EKG next door sounded louder as her awareness returned. 

She felt the poke of utensils on her side but barely winced as she took in his concentrated face. His sea green eyes were shielded as he looked down at her wound but it granted her a view of the thick lashes that framed his eyes. 

"Who are you?" she asked weakly. He doesn't reply, still remaining focused on her ribs. "Don't you speak?" 

His eyes flickered up to her for a quick second before falling back down. He suddenly placed a hand on her stomach, his flingers stretching out as though placating her. "This is going to hurt," he said so softly, almost a whisper. 

And then a hot, searing pain traveled through her ribs and in the surrounding area of her body. It was a pain unlike anything she had ever experienced. She wasn't a novice to the life of crime and with it the fair share of injuries, but the job had been rigged and both she and Linda had been ambushed. It was a miracle they escaped with their lives. 

But as her vision turned spotty, she wondered if it would matter at all anyway. The last thing she felt was his gentle hands on her and the mask coming over her face. 

That was the first night she met Everest and it wouldn’t be the last time she ever saw him, but that night Cecile had informed her that Linda was going to make it. She was able to get her stabilized with Everest's help once he made sure she was okay. 

Iris had stayed at the Artemis for the next few days while Linda was steady enough to go home. The Artemis had strict rules about long-term patients and emphasized the fact they were simply an ER and no more. The rest was on the criminals to find long-term treatment. 

But Cecile, despite her tough exterior always softened to Iris. On a rare night Cecile was up for chatting, she had let it slip that the man she had been married to had a daughter that looked like Iris. He had mourned his lost daughter and as she fell in love with Joe West, Cecile came to love his missing daughter too.

So Iris was permitted to stay at the Artemis with Linda, free of charge. In the moments Iris wasn't plotting revenge on those that betrayed her, she wandered around the Artemis. The place always intrigued her.

How a former nurse who was once married to a cop would come to create a secret sanctuary intrigued her and the story laid in the walls of the Artemis. It was inevitable that in her explorations, she'd bump into Everest, who always seemed to be wearing the same scrubs. 

One night after she left from visiting Linda in her room, she went into the parlor for a drink. She had poured herself a glass of whisky and was just about to leave when something caught her eyes. She turned toward the corner of the room that was shrouded by shadow, her hand already on her cyclone throwing knife, ready to strike. 

Her heart jumped in her throat when she saw it was Everest, standing by the window, his impenetrable gaze upon her. 

"Jeez, you do that often?" she murmured, slipping her blade back into her belt. He doesn’t say anything, but she can see that he's also nursing a glass of whisky. 

Iris narrowed her eyes at his lack of response. Maybe he really can't speak, she thought. But then she remembered he had whispered to her that night. Had he really spoken or had she just been delirious with pain and imagined it?

Either way, she wasn't keen on sticking around to find out what his deal was. She learned early on that the less attachments she formed, the better. 

She raised her glass toward him. "Cheers then," she said before turning away. 

"You're Fleur Mauve."

She turned slowly to look at him, but his eyes were downcast as though he regretted speaking at all. She scrutinized with curiosity. He had an American accent when he spoke, but she had said her name in perfect French. 

"And you're Everest. Although, I doubt that's your actual name like my name is Fleur Mauve." She paused, waiting for him to fill the silence. When he didn't speak, she continued. "What's your name?"

When he said nothing, she walked a little closer. "I'll tell you mine for yours," she said. Maybe it was a lie, maybe it wasn't. Everyone that visited the Artemis had an alias for a reason. It was the way criminals remembered that at the Artemis, everyone was anonymous to each other and any beef they may have with each other would have to stay out. It didn't matter if anyone recognized another patient here, they were all strangers to each other, no more than faces. No history, no past animosity, nothing. 

Iris would fight to protect her security, but she knew she was safe at the Artemis as long as Cecile ran it. 

"I already know yours," he said softly, looking out the window and into the dark night. 

Iris rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you know Fleur Mauve, but you know that isn't my actual—"

"Iris."

He looked back at her to meet her slightly widened eyes. "How do you know?"

Again, he looked at her impassively for a moment before turning his back to her and resuming his brooding by the window. 

"So that's it? All you got to say?" When he didn’t budge, Iris felt the irritation rise up within her. Fuck him. Cecile may like him—as much as Cecile can like anyone—but she wouldn't waste her time with him. "Shitty move," she said before walking out and downing her whisky all the while. 

She was set to shove the asshole out of her mind, to hell with the fact that he saved her and Linda. But apparently he had a penchant for saving them. Or her at least. 

The next day a crowd arrived at the Artemis, all vaguely injured. he could already tell from Cecile's stiff posture that this was unprecedented and something was amiss. 

"Only members allowed," Cecile said gruffly. "And I know I sure don't recognize half the lot here."

"Please," one of them pleaded. "We've been walking for miles just to find you." 

He was a gaunt looking man with dark, thick hair that was impressive considering the tell-tale signs of his age. The deep lines from the corner of his mouth and those shocking blue eyes gave way that he had to have been in his fifties. 

Iris looked at Cecile's stiff shoulder for a moment before stepping forward into the light. She crossed her arms and looked at Blue-Eyes squarely. "The rules of the Artemis are clear: No bracelet, no entry."

The man looked at Iris, something flickering in his eyes. She was used to getting all kinds of looks ranging from disgust to lust that she barely registered the look. 

He let out a harsh breath and gritted his teeth, his eyes steady on her. "Fine," he said. He slid his eyes to the side, toward his crew. "Back up."

"What?" a woman whispered harshly from behind him. 

Iris looked at the woman. She was young, about Iris's age, with long brown hair and pale skin. Her dark brown eyes looked at Iris with ire. 

"It's ok, Frost. We'll just have to take care of the rest on our own." 

He was only one day into his stay and already causing trouble as he sidled up to Iris with his arm in a sling. 

"You're very pretty," he said with a slow smirk that made Iris's blood boil. There was something about this man that rose the scales on her back. "I bet you get those looks from your mother."

She felt his hand come up to cup her bare arm and before she could twist his hand back, a pale hand flashed to it first. 

Eobard let out a sharp cry as Everest did exactly what Iris had been planning and twisted his hand back. Iris barely stepped out of the way despite Everest's sudden proximity. She felt the heat of his body so close to her own as his arm held in place, pulling Eobard's hand back. 

"No touching other patients," he said with a calm that belied the tension in his body. "Rules of the Artemis."

Everest let him go with a jerk and Eobard chuckled, shaking his hand out. "Geez," he wheezed. "I barely touched her."

Iris looked at Everest over her shoulder who still didn't move from behind her. From that vantage point her face was closer to his than it had ever been. She studied his features and saw the firm set in his jaws, but other than that, there was nothing in his expression that gave away what he was thinking.

Iris stepped away and looked back at Eobard. "Touch me again and it'll be the last thing those hands do," she said in an eerie tone. 

Eobard's grin widened and he let out a theatrical shiver. She could feel her knuckles itching to land a punch but she refrained. With one last threatening look, she strode out of the room. 

She didn't hear him follow, but could feel him walking behind her. When they got further down the hall, she whirled around and fixed him with a glare. "I can take care of myself. I don’t need some fucking knight in shining armor."

He said nothing as his green eyes rove over her face in that infuriatingly passive manner. She looked at him, waiting for him to say something while biting back hurtful words and cheap shots. She so very much wanted to get a rise out of him, wanted to see  _ something  _ in his expression. 

She suddenly wondered what he'd look like if he smiled. What did that smile look like? And then her eyes flickered to his lips, noting how soft they looked, how pink. Against her will, she wondered what they felt like. Would they feel just as soft as they looked? 

His own eyes traveled to her lips and he opened his mouth just barely. What felt like a long moment of silence followed before he finally spoke. "I know," he said softly. 

"What?"

"I know you can take care of yourself."

She took a step toward him but he suddenly moved away. He looked into her eyes one last time before turning around and walking down the hall.

When she first met him she was only mildly curious but couldn't be bothered, but now as she watched his retreating figure and the way his fingers twitched, she wondered just what his story was. 

She wouldn't find out until two days later. Linda was making slow progress, but Cecile was tending to her, allowing Iris to lay low for awhile while their trail ran cold. As a result, Iris spend most days wandering the halls of the Artemis…and watching him work.

It was odd, he was just a slip of a man, but in the moments a patient got rowdy, she watched as he effortlessly threw them off and gained the upper hand. It was as though he was a machine and Iris had to wonder if part of him actually was. She had heard Cecile vaguely mention working on some implant prototypes for the wealthier clients and maybe this Everest was her first guinea pig. 

She would soon learn just how right she was when she bumped into him on her way into the library. She had been walking in just as he stepped up to the doorway and Iris felt a hard chest against her for a moment before she was bounced back. 

The wind knocked out of her, she let out a gasp as she landed hard against the doorframe. Pain rippled up her side as her wound took the brunt of the impact. 

"Fuck," she hissed as she gingerly brought her hand against her rib. She felt him close in on her and carefully take her hand away. Blood bloomed on her pale blue blouse and she turned to look at him. 

It was the first time she had ever seen him out of his scrubs and instead he donned a dark gray thermal with dark blue jeans. While he wore the scrubs well, he wore the thermal very well. She could see the hard lines of his body that she didn't think were possible. He was definitely more muscle than she realized. 

He wordlessly guided her to the pool table and sat her against it before pulling a first aid kit from a nearby cabinet. When he returned in front of her, Iris reached out and touched his chest without thinking. He stilled his movements, but didn't look up and as her hand passed across his pecs, she could feel that while he refused to show what he was thinking—what he was feeling—his heart gave him away as it thumped hard against her hand.

"Are you made of steel or something?" she asked softly, not actually expecting a response. 

He looked up at her face and swallowed thickly. "Not entirely," rasped. 

She was shocked to hear his voice, especially in such close proximity that she momentarily forgot her pain. 

"What do you mean?" 

Instead of responding, he tugged on the hem of her blouse. She took it off carefully and looked at him curiously. But again, there was nothing in his expression as he intently looked down at her wound. 

His hand came up to her side gently and he furrowed his brows. "I'm sorry," he said. 

She felt his thumb rub softly against her skin before he set his jaw and got to work. She barely felt the discomfort as he expertly cleaned her wound and patched her up. And while he looked intently at her, she was watching him the entire time. 

"You don't talk much, huh? Why is that?"

He said nothing, only sparing her a brief glance before smoothing out a fresh bandage on her ribs. He dragged his thumb across the tape and slowly pulled away, almost reluctantly. 

"Don't have much to say," he finally mumbled. 

"Your eyes beg to differ."

He looked up at her, startled. "You may not realize this, but while your face is impassive, your eyes are some of the most expressive I've ever seen. You try to keep your secrets buried, keep the darkness away, but they're a part of you. art of your essence, part of your being. It's not all you are, but it's there." 

She looks at him for a moment longer, enjoying his deer-caught-in-headlights look before smiling slightly and looking away. 

She pulled on her shirt and by the time she has it over her head he stepped away and averted his gaze. His adams apple bobbed in his throat. 

"You don't have to hide. We all have darkness inside of us, we just have to let enough light in to keep us in check."

He hesitated and Iris wondered if this was the moment he would shut down and walk away. She was certainly surprised he uttered a single word, let alone several. "I haven't had that"

"No?"

"Maybe once."

"What happened?"

He swallowed thickly. "I got him hurt," he said hoarsely. "Nearly killed and I vowed never to let that happen again."

"So you left," she concluded. "Everest, horror is all around us and we're all bound to get hurt. Doesn't mean we push the people we love out of our life."

"Barry."

"What?"

"My name is Barry."

Her breath caught in her throat, taking in the gravity of the moment. Barry. It was a nice name. Sweet and fitting. 

"Barry," she whispered. 

They looked at one another for a long moment and Iris could feel this warmth inside of her, this yearning that she could have sworn she saw reflected in those deep green eyes. But then he looked away and took another step back. 

"I should go," he said softly, barely discernible. 

"Right. Right."

He was at the doorway when he paused and turned back slightly, not quite meeting her eyes again. "Thank you, Iris."

She had been too preoccupied marveling at the sound of his voice saying her name to question how he knew her name. She supposed she'd have to bump into him again. 

She didn’t have to wait very long. The next morning there was a scuffle between patients at the Artemis. What they were fighting about, no one knew, but what everyone  _ did  _ know was that there was absolutely no fighting at the Artemis. 

Barry was already at the scene, pulling two men apart. He was so preoccupied with shoving them away from each other, he didn't notice the third man come up behind him with a pen knife. Before he could land a hit, Iris took his reared back hand and twisted it with a crunch. 

The man let out a shriek of pain alerting Barry. He whipped around just as the pen knife fell to the ground. Iris used his hand as leverage and threw him against the neighboring wall, knocking him out. 

"Bad form attacking someone when they're not even fighting you," she said to the prone body. She looked up at Barry who nodded at her in thanks before hefting the man over his shoulder and shoving the others in front of them. 

He had apparently been seeking her out after he dismissed the men because he shyly walked up to Linda's doorway before stepping away. She wouldn't have known he was there if Linda hadn't covertly nudged her and nodded toward the doorway. 

"What's going on between you two?" Linda whispered. 

"Nothing. But there's something about him."

"Well, there's definitely something about you too by the way he was looking at you."

Iris ignored her as she walked out, catching up with him in the hall. She touched his hand and was surprised to find how hot his skin was. 

"Hey, they give you too much trouble?"

He shook his head. "Thank you. For earlier."

"Don't sweat it. Hey look, I've been meaning to ask you. How did you know who I was?"

Barry shrugged. “Nurse mentioned your name once.”

Iris furrowed her brows. “She spoke about me?”

He shook his head. “She fell asleep once in the parlour and was talking in her sleep.”

Iris looked away thoughtfully. “Huh, didn’t think Ce-Nurse thought of me that often.”

“Cecile thinks about you all the time.”

She turned to meet his gaze. She didn;t know how long she was lost in his sea green eyes but suddenly his eyes flickered down to her lips, leaning closer almost as though subconsciously. 

She stepped closer, but before she could press against him, he cleared his throat and took a step back. 

“I should um-I should go,” he mumbled, shifting his gaze away from her.   
  


“Go where?”

“Huh?”

“Where do you have to go?”

“Um…”

“Why don’t you accompany me to the parlour? I was going to get a drink.”

He hesitated, look around at anywhere but her face before finally settling upon her again. “Ok,” he said so softly she almost missed it.

“Yeah?”

He nodded, looking at her. She hid her smile as she turned away and headed toward the parlour. Once she poured them drinks and watched as he looked between the stool beside her and the one two seats away. 

“I don’t bite,” she murmured. “Well, not unless it’s warranted.”

He took a gulp of his drink as he sat beside her. “You’re really strong.”

Iris quirked her brows, amused that was the first thing out of his mouth. “Yeah, well I had to be. Especially when people underestimate me because of my frame.”

He nodded. “I get that. I had to learn to use that to my advantage.”

“Exactly,” she smiled. “But I have to say, you’re unnaturally strong. You made of steel or something?”

“Something like that.”

Iris shot him a bored look. 

“About fifty percent of my body is steel. I was dying when Cecile found me and I guess she took pity on me, so she tried to keep me alive. She succeeded but it meant becoming a cyborg.”

“You don’t look like one.”

The corner of his lips quirked the slightest bit. “I should hope not.”

Iris felt a flicker of warmth at the sight. Granted it was so brief, she might have thought she imagined it, but still, it was something. She downed the rest of her drink before reaching for the bottle again. She was still distracted by that glimmer of his smile that she reached to far, stumbling out of her stool.

But instead of feeling the ground underneath her, she felt a firm chest against hers and hot breath heavy against her cheek. Her eyes fluttered up to look at his, realizing his lips were mere centimeters away and his hands were nowhere near letting her go. 

She could see the war in his eyes and before he could back out, she leaned up on her tip toes and kissed him. He was taller up close and personal, but that didn’t deter her as she gripped his shoulders for balance. It didn’t matter that her boots had heels that gave her height. 

She felt a flutter of worry when he didn’t respond and pulled away to look at him but she only caught a flash of his dark eyes upon hers before he dove in and caught her lips in his. Iris couldn’t help the gasp that escaped her as he leaned her back against the bar and spread his hands wide across her ribs to grip her securely. 

She let her own hands travel across his hard torso and up his shoulders. She could almost feel where the steel plates were placed inside him, where they ended and his own muscles began. He breathed heavily into her mouth, his hands getting more restless when he suddenly pulled away with a loud smack.

She opened her eyes to look at him, her heart racing against her chest. “Don’t overthink it,” she said softly. 

He looked into her eyes, his chest heaving. “I-I don’t want to.”

“What are you afraid of?”

He looked away, his hands still on her waist. She brought her hands up to his face and gently tilted his chin up so he could meet her eyes. He was quiet for a long moment and Iris wondered if he was going to go back to being silent with her.

“Hurting,” he finally said.

She smiled sadly. “Aren’t we all?”

She searched his eyes before leaning in again to kiss him, this time softer and carefully. It was as though she was showing him in the kiss that she would be gentle with him, that she would take care. And when he kissed her back, she felt it in return. 

Sometimes the world can feel small when you’re alone, but in that moment, Iris’s life felt just a little wider with opportunity.

**Author's Note:**

> Bleep bloop throwing this into the void. One big, messy stream of consciousness. <3


End file.
